12-year-old Frisco singer to light up Freedom Fest with voice

Frisco Freedom Fest's "Party in the Plaza" features a Children's Expo with euro bungees, jump houses, games, and more.

Maya Canton

The Frisco Freedom Fest is Saturday, July 2. The first thing that may come to mind is "the fireworks," of course, but do you know the Community Stage is part of the Freedom Fest? The Community Stage features talented Frisco local bands and individual singers -- and you won't want to miss hearing up-and-coming 12-year-old singer Maya Canton.

Canton was selected by a committee comprised of Frisco City staff members. Each applicant was required to submit a written application as well as a DVD of a performance. You could say Canton is a real firecracker -- not just because she is singing a rendition of Katy Perry's song, "Firework," but her spunky personality and red hair explain it well.

Canton's love of singing is encouraged by her parents Troy and Daria Canton. Even though she's been singing since she was a toddler, they formally enrolled her in voice lessons at the Frisco Music Conservatory at six years old. Experimenting in the school choir and theater recently led the Cantons to hire private voice coach, Deb Driscoll, of ArtLoveMagic, to help Maya develop her singing talent and skills.

Driscoll led Canton to her singing debut at a Dallas coffee house, where she was accompanied by a local band. Canton has previously performed at various karaoke nights around Frisco and in Seussical, the Musical as Maizy La Bird, the sassy diva, in the Griffin Middle School play.

On a recent family trip to New Orleans, Canton's family stopped outside of the Bourbon Street Blues Company, while Maya sang to the band's version of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'." The bar owner heard her voice and asked her to come back to sing a couple of songs the next night. Being in New Orleans, Canton is too young to enter the club, so they had her stand at the entrance, giving her a microphone to captivate the crowd.

The live performance, in New Orleans, greeted Canton with an ovation and instant celebrity status -- people applauded, gave her cash, and recognized her throughout New Orleans during the remainder of her visit.

"I am happiest when I'm singing. I'm also a perfectionist and rarely get nervous," says Canton, "I just don't want to mess up." Her mother, Daria, said "Maya is learning how to use her mistakes to help her become better and better. She's only 12, but she has big dreams and I know she puts a lot of pressure on herself to do well."

You can go to here to see Maya's performance as Maizy in the Griffin Middle School play. To see her live this weekend, you can catch her performance, following the city's welcome and the singing National Anthem, which begins at 3:50 p.m. Community Stage performances begin at 4 p.m. in Simpson Plaza, located in front of City Hall in the heart of Frisco Square, 6101 Frisco Square Blvd.

In addition to the homegrown talent on the Community Stage, Frisco Freedom Fest's "Party in the Plaza" features a Children's Expo with euro bungees, jump houses, games, and more; a Hometown Hero Exhibit, Vendor Village and Taste of Frisco.